Adult-FanFiction.org : Anime

May/December	By : thewriterwhocameinfromthecold Category: +G to L > Love Hina Views: 14880 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: I do not own Love Hina or its associated characters. I am not profiting from this in any way.

Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
They walked until Naru thought that her legs were going to snap in two. Freed of responsibility to her company, Yumi seemed determined to take in as much of Kyoto as the city had to offer. Her drive led them to Gion where they spent hours wandering about the shops and marvelling at the geishas. To Naru it was delightful, and for the first time, she honestly began to feel like she was on vacation; away from her troubles. She could still feel the pangs of her failure lurking somewhere deep inside; but amidst the geishas and yukata displays, it seemed, finally, as if Tokyo U could wait. Yumi, on the other hand, seemed to be losing some of her lustre. Naru could neither figure out what had gone on with Yumi at the front desk, nor work up the courage to ask; but whatever had happened, she had begun to grow quiet and her smile was becoming more strained. For her own part, she seemed content to pacify whatever pained her by eating. She had stopped at no less than three food carts, and was well on her way to a good old fashioned vacation binge.
"Where do you put it?" Naru wondered as she tucked into a container of gyoza.
Yumi glared. "Mind your business. You sound like my mother."
Naru was so surprised that she couldn't say anything for three blocks as she smarted from the rebuke. Yumi either didn't realise or didn't care as she continued her snack. They turned a corner and Naru caught sight of a small ornamental screen, the kind one might place on their mantle or dresser. Painted on it were samurai afoot and on horseback locked in battle. She could practically hear the crash of steel and battle cries of the warriors as their blades mated upon the canvas.
Motoko would love it, she thought; and it occurred to her that she ought to bring something back for everyone back at Hinata. Yumi's sudden moodiness only increased the desire, and so she turned to the woman and announced her intent.
The idea of separation seemed to stir something in Yumi. "You want to go? Well…I mean, if you have to. Meet up later maybe?" she asked with enough hope in her voice to make Naru regret trying to snub her.
Just in case, they exchanged the phone numbers of their hotels, and agreed to meet up an hour later at Shoren-in Temple. Once Yumi was gone, Naru rushed back to buy the screen. It was a little more expensive than she expected, but not enough to crush the impulse to buy. A journey among the nearby shops yielded similar bounty, and by the end of the hour she was laden with a bottle of sake for Kitsune, some spices for Shinobu, and a book on bananas for Su. The only person remaining was Keitaro.
Cold guilt settled over her shoulders as she thought of her landlord, of their last conversation. Where was he now, she wondered. Was he still angry with her? He had every right to be, of course. Why? Why had she been so stupid and hit the man who was fast becoming one of the closest people in her small, cloistered life? When she'd seen him on the train, she knew that she owed him an apology; but when he went passed by her with barely a word, it was easier to be offended at the snub than acknowledge why she deserved it.
She caught sight of her reflection in shop window. "You can be a real bitch sometimes."
She gave her head a shake, and forced herself to dig deep. Come on, where had that girl gone? You know, the one who had charged into the exams, certain that she would pass on the first try? She couldn't undo what she had done, but she could do something to make up for it. But what to do? She tried to think of something that Keitaro might like, but the only thing she could think, the only things that she could associate him with were drawing and studying. Where did that leave her? For that matter, how could she know so little about someone who she was sure, absolutely certain, was one of the closest friends she had?
She was shaken from these dreary contemplations when she looked at her watch and saw that she was late. She made quick strides down the street that was fast filling up with workers preparing to go home for the day. Gradually, the city streets gave way to nature as she entered the temple grounds. She followed the path up to Shoren-in amid the immaculate shrubs and maple trees until she came to the main temple and the pond along side it. The temple, a haven from crowds and tourists, was almost deserted. Yumi was easy to spot, sitting on a stone bridge over the pond, looking down at the water. The rhythmic clack of a shishi-odoshi sounded in Naru's ears as she approached and tried to gauge Yumi's mood. The woman looked up and, recognising Naru, gave her a melancholy smile.
"Looks like you did well for yourself."
Naru hoisted the bags she was holding in affirmation. "Are you all right?"
Yumi nodded and looked back down at the water. "It's so peaceful here. Just beautiful." They stood that way for a while – Yumi watching the water, Naru watching Yumi – until Yumi asked, "Do you ever think about fate?"
Naru blinked. "I don't know. I guess not."
"It's such a strange thing," Yumi went on without looking up. "Choices, I mean. When we stand before a decision, we make a choice. Just one. But there always seem to be so many others." She looked up and smiled as she'd discovered something incredible. "We make a choice and then things fall out depending on that choice and then we look back and say 'I could have done this' or 'I should have done that'. But what if those other choices only exist in our mind? What if we're fated? One decision, one choice, one path." She reached down to touch the water and watched the ripples as they spread away from her finger. "Makes you think, doesn't it?"
The only thing it made Naru was uncomfortable. If there was only ever one outcome and all other choices were just illusions, did that mean it was destiny that she fail the entrance exam? The idea chipped away at the good mood she'd spent so much time building up.
"You're a very unusual woman," she said.
Yumi chuckled. "I suppose I am. And yet you keep travelling with me. Who's weirder: the weirdo, or the weirdo who follows her?"
Naru was prepared to accept criticism. She was even prepared to accept philosophy. Both at the same time, however, was just a bit much for her tired spirit. She was having enough of an existential crisis on her own, thank you very much.
"Fine," she said, and turned to leave.
"Wait," Yumi called, realising Naru was serious. She got to her feet and followed after her. "I didn't mean it like that, and I shouldn't have dug into you that way. I'm sorry. My emotions are all over the place today."
Naru stopped walking, but didn't turn back. "Why am I doing this?"
She didn't realise that she'd spoken aloud until Yumi replied, "Because you're like me? Lonely girl, strange city. It helps to have a friend, right?"
At that moment, as she turned, Naru felt a longing to see Kitsune. "I guess you're right about that."
Yumi's smile, her real smile was back. "Sorry. I'm just being a maudlin bitch. Let's go get some dinner and we'll forget all about fate, destiny and all the rest of it."
How that woman could think about food, Naru did not know. "Just a minute," she said, heading in the direction of the temple. Yumi called after her, but she gave no reply as she approached the shrine. Then she tossed a few yen into the offering, rang the bell, and clapped her hands.
She prayed, Please let me pass the entrance exam next year. And then, a second later, she added, And please make sure Keitaro's doing all right.
By the time the pair made it back to the street, afternoon had given way to the purple glow of evening. The traffic was thinning out as tourists and workers alike abandoned the sidewalks for the nearby restaurants. Over Naru's right shoulder, a group of salarymen on a patio laughed as their friend told a story about his supervisor. The man imitated his boss in a deep growling voice and waved his arms as he raved like a wild man about cutting costs by making sure that every employee account for their paperclips at the end of the day. Next to that was a seafood restaurant gearing up for the dinner rush. In front was a truck where men were unloading the day's catch. Naru covered her nose as the smell of raw fish filled the street. To her left she heard was sounded like something between a hiccup and a cough. Naru turned towards Yumi.
"Are you all – Jesus!"
No, Yumi was not all right. Yumi's face looked completely green as she held a hand over her mouth. Her eyes flashed with panic as she turned on her heel and strove away from the restaurant as quickly as dignity and kitten heels would permit. Naru kept pace until they reached the end of the block and Yumi leaned back against the wall of a music store.
She wiped the sweat from her brow as she took a shuddering breath. "I'm all right now."
Naru sighed in relief. "I didn't know what…You looked like…"
Yumi gave a suffering chuckle. "Yeah, sorry. I can't stand that smell."
"Did you want me to get you anything?" Naru asked, trying not be bothered by the looks of passersby. Remembering the ginger tea that her mother used to give her when she got sick, she suggested that they find a teahouse; and once Yumi agreed, they asked directions from a shop owner who pointed them in the direction of a small place called the Garden of the Swans. Yumi gulped her tea down and settled back into her chair, waiting for the pangs to pass.
"Sorry."
Naru shook her head as she sipped. They sat in silence until Yumi's complexion returned to normal.
"So, then," Fujiko said, laying down her chopsticks as lunch came to an end, "What news of our absent sister?" She turned shot Keitaro a searching glance.
Keitaro croaked around his mouthful of rice at this sudden question. He swallowed. "Motoko? She's…" – He searched for a word – "fine, I guess."
"Is that so?" Fujiko replied with evident disbelief. "Then why isn't she here?"
Keitaro's collar began to feel tight around his throat. "Excuse me?" he asked, pulling at it.
"Fujiko," her mother chided. "Motoko has her own reasons for moving out. Our guest has nothing to do with it." She turned to Keitaro and apologised for Fujiko's remarks. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Fujiko tense up as her lip curled back into a familiar snarl.
"It's quite all right," he said, wanting on instinct to run away. He searched for anything that he might say about Motoko that would assuage whatever it was Fujiko was simmering about; but the more he thought about it, the more he realised how little he could say. She might have stopped attacking him on a regular basis, but Motoko still kept to herself as a matter of course.
In the end, he was saved from interrogation by Satomi tugging on his sleeve.
"Big Brother?"
Big Brother; how long had it been since he'd heard that? He turned to look at Satomi smiling up at him. "What is it?"
"Have you seen the gardens?" When he shook his head, she got up and tugged on his arm. Keitaro's eyes widened as he felt his body shift. Could that little girl really be that strong?
"Satomi," Sachiko warned.
"It's all right," he said, standing up. He gave Sachiko a deferential nod. "With your kind permission, it seems my attention has been requested elsewhere."
Sachiko gave a mirthful smile at his formality. "You might ask her to show you the orchard. The trees have begun to flower and look quite lovely in the afternoon."
Satomi brightened as if the idea had not occurred to her. "Come on," she called, pulling Keitaro by the hand. On the way out, he cast one last apologetic look at the table and saw, amid the amused looks of her mother and sisters, Fujiko glowering at him with sufficient distaste as to make him increase his strides.
"Look at this," Satomi said once they were out in the gardens behind the main house. "Isn't it pretty here?"
It was. The sky seemed ablaze in explosions of pink and purple as Keitaro examined the stretch of peach, plum, and cherry trees. Scattered amongst them were orderly and well-maintained collections of shrubs, which stood in stark contrast to the incongruous sight of Satomi – whose face so resembled Motoko's – smiling without a care in the world.
Satomi broke into a run. "Hey, Big Brother, catch me!"
Praying not to damage the borrowed kimono, Keitaro gave chase along the rocky path running through the garden's centre as she took through the orchard and past a Koi pond. How could she move those little legs so fast? He pushed past the ache in his sides and quickened his pace as she disappeared around the corner of the house. When he reached the other side, she was nowhere in sight.
"Satomi?"
Where could she have disappeared to? He looked around: a short distance away there was a small one storey building, but he doubted even a gazelle like her could have run that far that fast.
"Satomi? Where'd you go?"
A few feet away, he could see what looked like a shed leaning up against the main house. Having nothing else to go on, he decided to investigate and pushed open the worn wooden door. The musty, earthy smell endemic to garages and garden sheds everywhere assailed his nostrils as he looked through the doorway at the neat arrangement of hoes, shovels, and other tools.
Just then, something flew down towards his face and shouted "Boo!" Keitaro flinched backwards and tripped over a stone, falling hard upon the ground. He looked up in shock to see Satomi hanging upside down in the doorway, giggling at him as he struggled to his feet. "Got you!"
"What are you doing there?" he asked, dusting himself off. "That's dangerous."
"No, it's not," she replied with self-assurance only children can possess. Then she seemed to kick away from what she was hanging on and landed on her feet nimble as a cat.
"You scared me."
She snorted and turned back towards the shed. "This is where my secret place is."
"What? The shed?" That was kind of cute. It reminded him of when he and Kanako would make a club house out of the store room at his family shop when he was growing up.
"Not the shed, silly," Satomi said, tugging at his hand. "In here. Look." She pointed upwards towards a small hole through the rafters at the back of the shed. "That's where I go to play or when I want to be by myself."
"Up there?" Keitaro asked, giving the hole a doubtful look.
In answer, Satomi climbed up the shed's wooden frame and pulled herself up into the hole. Somehow, she turned herself around to look down at him. "Come on up."
Keitaro cast a nervous eye at the aged wood. "I don't think I can."
"Of course you can," she said with an impatient huff. "Just do what I did."
Admittedly he had the advantage of added height, but still…
"I don't think I can fit in there."
"It's wider inside. Now come on!" Her voice grew whiny.
Keitaro rolled his eyes. Might as well get it over with and prove that it couldn't be done. But first, he had to safeguard the kimono. He undid the sash and folded the robe over an old wooden armchair sitting next to a table covered in seed packets. He kicked off the shoes and rolled the pants up past his knees. It was the best he could do. He hoisted his foot up onto the frame and pulled himself up, to stand on it. Astonished that it could even hold his weight, he sidled along the board until he was face to face with Satomi.
"Wow, Big Brother, you're really tall," she said before disappearing back into the dark hole. Keitaro stared down it, but saw nothing.
Now for the hard part. He cursed his weak body as he struggled to pull himself up and do what a twelve year old girl had done with scant effort. The old boards dug into his stomach as he hoisted himself upwards and came to rest halfway inside the hole. Satomi had been right: it was much wider inside. There was just enough light streaming in from behind for him to make out the wooden beams of the small chamber, just wide enough for two people and just tall enough to crouch in.
"Where are we?" he asked, hissing in pain as his legs scraped across the edge and he managed finally to get inside.
"Papa told me that our ancestors built it in case bad men ever came to fight here," Satomi replied. "He said that there used to be a tunnel under that shed that led far away, but it was closed off long before I was born." She said this with the petulance of a child being denied adventure, as if it were absurd to close off a perfectly good tunnel for reasons as paltry as safety.
"You like it here?" Keitaro looked around cramped and musty escape tunnel.
"Uh huh. Follow me!" She disappeared further into the tunnel, Keitaro scrambling to keep up.
As he crawled, he realised that he could hear things. Footsteps rang out over his head and beneath him he could he clatter and the sound of running water.
"Where are we?"
"Above the kitchen," Satomi said, rounding a corner. "Sounds like they're still inside."
Without knowing to whom she was referring, he pressed on and tried to listen. As he followed, he could hear muffled voices.
"But I don't understand. Why is he here now of all times?" That sounded like Fujiko. He must have been above the dining room.
"He is here because I invited him," he heard Sachiko say. "It would have been impolite not to do so. The day is irrelevant."
"And quite right," Eri said. "Our sister is in his care."
"Hey," Keitaro called ahead to Satomi. "We shouldn't be here."
Satomi just giggled. "Don't be silly. Now shush. I want to hear."
Keitaro considered turning around and leaving the tunnel, but he didn't feel right about leaving Satomi, no matter how many times she might have been in there.
"It's she who should be here, not him." Fujiko's voice rose slightly.
"Motoko has her reasons," Sachiko said. Even through the ceiling, Keitaro could hear her patience beginning to fray.
Keitaro could hear a thump.
"The same answer." Fujiko retorted. "The same words for over a year."
"Where are you going?" Harumi asked.
"Where do you think?"
A pregnant silence filled the dining room and the tunnel above it. Keitaro felt like a voyeur for listening, and the silence only made it worse as his mind echoed with unabated accusation. Relief came as he noticed Satomi begin crawling again, either tired of listening or convinced that nothing else was forthcoming.
As Keitaro made to follow her, he managed to hear Harumi ask, "So, will he be coming?" Whomever the question was meant for, he never heard the reply as he followed Satomi. It occurred to him as he followed the sound of Satomi's movement that the air had become fresher all of a sudden. They must have been near some sort of airflow.
"Almost there," Satomi said.
He was tempted to ask just where she meant, but decided that all would be revealed in the fullness of time, and kept crawling after her. As they rounded another corner, Satomi became illuminated by a dim shaft of light from up ahead that seemed to be coming from a small opening just beyond them. Keitaro crawled through the opening after Satomi and found himself inside a small room. Light flickered at them through what looked like an old flue. Opposite the opening they had crawled through was a doorway filled in by bricks. The floor was covered by tatami nearly threadbare with age. At the centre of the room were a couple cushions, a few books and manga volumes strewn about.
Satomi turned to face him with a proud smile. "This is where I like to be by myself. Isn't it wonderful?"
Keitaro had to admit as he looked around that this beat the hell out of any childhood clubhouse he could name, and said so. What could fire the imagination of child like a secret room in a castle?
Satomi approached the wall to his right. "My room is on the other side, and that," she said, pointing the wall opposite, "is where Motoko's room was." Her voice became sad on the last word, and Keitaro felt his heart go out to her.
"You miss your sister," he said, not knowing what else to say.
She nodded, looking at her feet. Then she knelt down to straighten the books at her feet. "Big Brother?" She looked up at him with wide eyes. "Is she happy?"
"Happy?"
She pulled at her sleeve. "Happy where she is."
Keitaro scratched his cheek. Did he really know Motoko well enough to say anything about her one way or another? It wasn't as if she confided in him or invited his confidence. Still, as her landlord, oughtn't he to know more about her than her name and the fact that she always paid her rent on time? Come to think of it, was there anyone that Motoko confided in? Even Naru had admitted considerable gaps in her knowledge about the samurai. Hell, until today he hadn't even known she had a sister, much less five.
"She seems to like it there," he said. She had stopped threatening to leave or force him out of the house, at least. That was as deep an understanding of Motoko's heart and mind as he was prepared to claim. "She keeps herself busy by training."
"That's good," she said, but her expression suggested otherwise.
He sat down so the two of them were face to face. "Do you miss your sister?"
She made an affirming noise and nodded without looking at him.
He wished he could ask her why Motoko had left, but looking at her it was plain she was as confused by her sister's absence as he was. Besides, it seemed unfair to interrogate a little girl about such things.
"If you wanted," he said, leaning forward, "I'm sure you could visit us in Hinata if you wanted."
Satomi's expression brightened. "Really?"
He nodded. "If your mother is all right with it, then absolutely."
As quickly as her smile widened, it disappeared. "What if she doesn't want to see me?"
He laughed. "Come on, I'm sure that's not true. And even if she doesn't want to see anyone, even if she's not there, you can still come and visit us as my guest." He thought about the fuss the girls would make if Satomi showed up on their doorstep. She'd need Motoko to rescue her just to keep from being cuddled to death.
He grunted in surprise as Satomi lunged forward to hug him. "Thank you so much Big Brother!" Then, like a flash, she was on the other side of the room. "Come on!" she called. "There's still more to see."
By the time Satomi had dragged Keitaro through every nook and cranny of the tunnel system, he thought his back would seize up.
Maybe I shouldn't have invited her, he thought as he rejoiced to see dim light at the end of the tunnel. Imagine what she and Su could get up to.
Ahead of him, Satomi leapt down through an opening, and Keitaro made to catch up, wincing as his bruised knees struck the ground. He stuck his head out and realised that Satomi had led them in a long circuit back to the garden shed. His back and legs protested as he lowered himself down to the ground and reached for his folded kimono. It was a good thing he hadn't tried to bring it with him. No sooner had he tied the garment, then Satomi was off running again, calling for him to catch her. Where did she get that kind of energy?
I've got to ask Motoko for some tips when I get back, he thought, clutching at the stitch in his side.
As he chased Satomi around a corner, he came face to face with Sachiko and Harumi.
"So here you are," Sachiko said with a smile. "I hope she hasn't been running you too ragged."
"Oh, no," Keitaro replied, discreetly rubbing at his aching back.
"How do you find our home, Mr. Urashima?" Harumi asked, speaking with him directly for the first time since they were introduced.
Keitaro scratched the back of his neck as he cast an admiring glance around the garden. "It's incredible."
Sachiko acknowledged this with a graceful nod and knelt down to look at Satomi. "Uncle Shiro is at the gate. Would you like to come greet him with me?" At her daughter's enthusiastic nod, she took her hand and rose to look at Keitaro. "With your permission, Mr. Urashima, Harumi will continue to entertain you while I see to this new guest."
As mother and daughter departed, Harumi turned to Keitaro with a smile. "Shall we go this way?" She indicated the pathway behind him and they walked together.
Keitaro found himself growing nervous, unsure how to act around this beautiful and proper looking lady. As they passed under the cherry trees, he tried to think of something to say, but could think of nothing.
At last, Harumi broke the silence. "So, did Satomi show you much of the grounds or did she just take you straight to her secret passage?" Off his surprised look, she laughed. "Don't look so surprised. I was ten years old once too. It's quite something up there, isn't it? You have the whole run of the house and you can hear so well." His throat tightened as she gave him a knowing smile. "We have to watch what we say whether she's in the room or not."
Shame hit Keitaro like a blow. "I'm deeply sorry, I never meant to…" He trailed off as she began to laugh again.
"Don't look so stricken, Mr. Urashima. We have long since learned the tell-tale noises she makes when she's up there. Besides" – she reached up to brush some imaginary dust from his shoulder, that same smile back in place – "were I cross with you, you'd know it."
"Of that," Keitaro replied, his mind filling with thoughts Rock Splitting Sword attacks, "I have no doubt at all." Then to get far away from the present subject, he asked, "Who is it that your mother was talking about? Shiro, was it?"
"Ah yes." Harumi twirled a strand of hair between her fingers. "Shiro Kamina. He went to school with our father and mother."
"She called him your uncle."
Harumi seemed to be leading them beyond the main house towards a collection of out buildings. "He's not really. It's just he's…" She searched for the right words. "He's always been with us, since before even Tsuruko was born. He's been an uncle to us girls in every way short of blood." There was genuine love in her voice as she spoke, explaining that Uncle Shiro, or rather Dr. Kamina had been their father Kenzo Himura's best friend.
"Himura?" Keitaro wondered. "Not Aoyama?"
Harumi shook her head. "Aoyama is my mother's name. Our lineage stretches back as far back as the beginning of Japan itself. In order to keep control of our school within our family, our tradition has always been that all men who marry into it must take our name. Of course, given our venerable history, most men are prepared to set aside their own family pride for the honour of joining us."
If it meant living in surroundings such as these, Keitaro would have been willing to take any name they gave him.
Harumi went on: Shiro Kamina had been the man who introduced Kenzo to Sachiko when they were in university together, and their friendship had persisted all these decades. Shiro had been a constant in all the girls' lives from birth, and had been an uncle to them in all the ways that mattered.
"Why is he coming now?" Keitaro wondered. "I mean, I'm surprised that he wasn't at lunch."
"He always comes at this time on this date."
"Why?"
She stopped and turned to him. For a moment her carefree expression fell away, and her brown eyes pierced into him with an almost frightening scrutiny. Then, just as quickly, the mask was back in place.
"But of course," she said. "There's no way you could know, is there? Tomorrow is the anniversary of our father's death."
- 6
- 7
- 8
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

May/December